Cab-over telescopic camper



Aug. 13, 1968 E R. GARRISON CAB-OVER TELESCOPIC CAMPER Fild Oct. 10,1966 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

EARL. R. GARRISON ATTORNEY g 1968 E. R. GARRISON 3,397,004

CAB-OVER TELESCOPIC CAMPER Filed Oct. 10, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 El 3e 4040 I8 I6 2 la EARL R- GARRISON BY 5 w AT TORNEY United States Patent3,397,004 CAB-OVER TELESCOPIC CAMPER Earl R. Garrison, 1445 Bellevue,Ave., Burlingame, Calif. 94010 Filed Oct. 10, 1966, Ser. No. 585,646 6Claims. (Cl. 296-23) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A cab-over telescopiccamper having an upper room section telescopically arranged on a lowerroom section for raising and lowering movements. The lower section has acab-over compartment projecting forwardly therefrom, while the uppersection has a cab-over cover fixed thereto to overlie the cab-overcompartment of the lower section. When the upper section is raised,swingable panels are automatically raised so as to bridge the spacebetween the cab-over compartment and cover, and these panels areautomatically moved into the confines of the camper when the uppersection is lowered.

The present invention relates to improvements in a cabover telescopiccamper. It consists of the combinations, constructions and arrangementof parts, as hereinafter described and claimed.

It is a well known fact that cab-over campers are provided at thepresent time, which have a compartment disposed to overlie the cab ofthe truck on which the camper is mounted. This arrangement results in arather bulky appearance and presents a high center of gravity, when thecamper is travelling, and furthermore the cab-over compartment causesconsiderable wind resistance during travelling.

As the cardinal object of this invention, it is proposed to provide acab-over telescopic camper in which a lower room section is arranged formounting on the load-carrying platform of a truck, .and an upper roomsection is telescopically arranged on the lower room section for raisingand lowering movements. The lower room section is provided with acab-over compartment fixed thereto and projecting forwardly over the cabof the truck, while the upper room section has a cover that projectsforwardly over the compartment.

It is .a further object of the invention to provide a transverse frontpanel and a pair of longitudinal side panels that are movable to bridgethe space between the walls of the compartment and the walls of thecab-over cover, when the upper room section is raised relative to thelower room section for occupying. However, when the upper room sectionand its cab-over cover are lowered for travelling, these panels aremoved into out-of-the-way positions, thus permitting the upper roomsection and the cabover cover to descend. In this manner, the advantagesof a telescopic camper with a low center of gravity and less resistanceto wind will be obtained during travelling.

Another object of the invention is to provide means that are operable toautomatically raising the panels when the upper room section iselevated, and to allow the movement of the panels into folded positionswhen the upper room section is depressed.

Other objects and advantages will appear as the specification proceeds.The novel features of the invention will be set forth in the appendedclaims.

3,397,004 Patented Aug. 13, 1968 Drawings For a better understanding ofthe invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings,forming part of this specification, in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of my cab-over telescopic camper inocccupying position, that is, with the upper room section and itscab-over cover raised.

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of the lower room section and disclosing thetransverse front panel and the longitudinal side panels in raisedposition.

FIG. 3 is an isometric view showing the upper room section and itscab-over cover lowered into travelling position.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the irregular plane44 of FIG. 3, parts being shown in elevation.

FIG. 5 is a transverse sectional view taken along the plane 55 of FIG.1.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken along the plane66 of FIG. 5.

While I have shown only one embodiment of the invention, it should beunderstood that various changes, or modifications, may be made withinthe scope of the appended claims without departing from the spiritthereof.

Detailed description Referring now to the drawing in detail, I haveshown a cab-over telescopic camper having a lower room sectiondesignated generally at A arranged for mounting on the load-carryingplatform 10 of a truck B (see FIG. 4). Moreover, :an upper room sectionC is telescopically arranged on the lower room section A and is movableinto raised position relative to the lower room section for occupying(see FIGS. 1 and 5) and into a lowered position relative thereto fortravelling (see FIGS. 3 and 4). Suitable guides 11 may be provided onthe lower room section A for guiding the upper room section C for up anddown movements.

The lower room section A is provided with a cab-over compartment D (seeFIG. 4) that is fixed thereto and projecting forwardly therefrom tooverlie the cab 12 of the truck, this compartment having a transversefront wall 13 and a pair of longitudinal side Walls 14, see FIGS. 1, 2and 5.

The upper room section C is provided with a cab-over cover E fixedthereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab-overcompartment D, and this cover is movable up and down with the upper roomsection. This cab-over cover has a transverse front wall 15 and a pairof longitudinal side walls 16 that are movable into spaced relationabove the transverse front Wall 13 and the longitudinal side Walls 14,respectively, of the cab-over compartment (see FIGS. 1 and 5).

It will be noted that a transverse front panel 17 is movable intoposition to bridge the space between the front transverse walls 13 and15 of the compartment D- and the cover E when the latter is raised (seeFIGS. 1 and 2). Also, a pair of longitudinal side panels 18 are movableinto positions to bridge the space between the longitudinal side walls14 and 16 of the compartment D and the cover B when the latter is raised(see FIGS. 1, 2 and 5). Suitable weather-proof seals 19 and 20 areprovided between the walls ofthe compartmen-t'and cover (see FIGS. 4 and5).

As the specification continues, it will be apparent that I provide meansthat are operable to automatically move the transverse front panel 17and the longitudinal side panels 18 into bridging positions when theupper room section C is raised, and to free all of these panels formovement into out-of-the-way positions when the upper room section islowered.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, it will be seen that the transverse frontpanel 17 is hinged at 21 to the front transverse wall 13 of thecompartment D, and each of the side panels 18 is hinged at 22 to one ofthe longitudinal side walls 14 of this compartment. All of these panelsare foldable into the compartment when the upper room section is lowered(see FIG. 4 and dot-dash lines in FIG. At this time, the folded fronttransverse panel 17 is disposed over the folded longitudinal sidepanels. When the upper room section C is raised, the transverse frontpanel 17 is swung toward bridging position prior to swinging thelongitudinal side panels 18 toward bridging position, the detailedstructure for accomplishing these results being set forth later in thespecification. Briefly stated, the means for swinging the panels 17 and18 into bridging positions is supported by the upper room section C andhas a connection with the lower room section A, whereby raising theupper room section relative to the lower room section will operate thesemeans.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the lateral ends 23 of transverse panel 17abut the frontal ends 24 of the longitudinal side panels 18 when all ofthese panels are swung into bridging positions, and weather-proofingflanges 25 are mounted on the transverse front panel 17 to abut theouter faces of the longitudinal side panels 18 when all of these panelsoccupy bridging positions (see FIGS. 1 and 2).

The lower room section A has a plate 26 that forms a bottom wall for thecompartment D, for example, to support bedding 27 (see FIGS. 4 and 5),this plate projecting forwardly and to both lateral sides of the lowerroom section. The side walls of the upper room section C have notches 23extending upwardly thereinto in the regions of the cab-over cover E toreceive the laterallyprojecting sides of the plate 26 when the upperroom section C is lowered. This plate is located to overlie the cab 12of the truck B, This lower edge 29 of the front wall 15 of the cover Eand upper edges 30 of these notches are located so as to rest on theplate 26 when the upper room section is lowered (see FIG. 3).

As disclosed in FIG. 4, a front panel-operating cable 31 has one endthereof anchored at 32 to the transverse front panel 17 and its otherend anchored at 33 to the lower room section A, the intermediate portionof this cable being trained over pulleys 34 carried by the upper roomsection C, and this cable has a length so as to automatically swing thetransverse front panel 17 into bridging position as the upper roomsection C is raised (see FIGS. 1 and 2).

It will be observed that a large pulley 35 is rotatablyt carried by theupper room section C, and has one end of each of a pair of sidepanel-operating cables 36 secured thereto, the intermediate portions ofthese cables being trained over pulleys 37 carried by the upper roomsection C, the other end of each of these cables being anchored at 38 toone of the longitudinal side panels 18 so as to swing these panels intobridging position when the upper room section C is raised and the largepulley 35 is rotated. These cables and pulleys are shown in FIGS. 5 and6.

A small pulley 39 is fixed to the large pulley 35 so that the formerwill turn the latter, and the small pulley has one end of apulley-rotating cable 40' secured thereto, the intermediate portion ofthis cable being trained over a pulley 41 carried by the upper roomsection C, the other end of this pulley-rotating cable being anchored at42 to the lower room section A so as to rotate both the small and largepulleys when the upper room section C is raised, this pulley-rotatingcable having a length to swing the longitudinal side panels 18 intobridging position after the transverse front panel 17 has been partiallyraised, whereby the side panels 18 will clear the front panel 17. Someslack may be provided in the cable 40 so that the front panel will swingtoward raised position prior to the start of the upward swinging of theside panels, and a weight 43 or the like may be provided on the cable 40to maintain this cable taut on the pulleys 39 and 41, and this sameweight will operate to maintain the cables 36 taut since the weight willtend to rotate the pulleys 35 and 39 in the direction of the arrow 44(see FIG. 6). Likewise, slack may be provided in the cable 31, ifrequired.

Although the front transverse panel 17 starts to raise before thelongitudinal side panels 18, the ratio of the large and small pulleys 35and 39, respectively, is such that all of these panels will reach fullyraised positions at the same time, where they will contact theweatherproofing seals 19 and 20 (see FIG. 5). Likewise, when thesepanels start to descend toward folded positions, the longitudinal sidepanels 18 will commence to fold inward- 1y, as suggested by the arrows45 in FIG. 2 before the front panel 17 starts to swing downwardly, assuggested by the arrow 46 in FIG. 2, and all of these panels come torest in the manner shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings.

' Any suitable means may be provided for raising and lowering the upperroom section C and its cover E relative to the lower room section A andits compartment D;

and since this is well known in the art, no disclosure thereof isconsidered necessary.

I claim:

1. In a cab-over telescopic camper:

(a) a lower room section arranged for mounting on the load-carryingplatform of a truck;

(b) an upper room section telescopically arranged on the lower roomsection and being movable into raised position relative to the lowerroom section for occupying and into a lowered position relative theretofor travelling;

(c) the lower room section being provided with a cabover compartmentfixed thereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab ofthe truck, this compartment having a transverse front wall. and a pairof longitudinal side walls;

' (d) the upper room section being provided with a cab-over cover fixedthereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab-overcompartment, and this cover being movable up and down with the upperroom section;

' (e) the cab-over cover having a transverse front Wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls that are movable into spaced relation above thetransverse front wall and the longitudinal side walls, respectively, ofthe cab-over compartment;

(f) a transversefront panel movable into a position to bridge the spacebetween the front transverse walls of the compartment and cover when thelatter is raised;

(g) a pair of longitudinal side panels movable into positions to bridgethe space between the longitudinal side walls of the compartment and thecover when the latter is raised;

(h) the transverse front panel being hinged to the transverse front wallof the compartment, and each of the longitudinal side panels beinghinged to one of the longitudinal side walls of this compartment;

(i) all of these panels being foldable into the compartment when theupper room section is lowered, with the folded front transverse panelbeing disposed over the folded longitudinal side panels;

(j) and means are provided and operable to automatically swing thetransverse front panel and the longitudinal side panels into bridgingposition when the upper room section is raised, and said means beingmade to swing the transverse front panel toward bridging position priorto swinging the longitudinal side panels toward bridging position.

2. The cab-over telescopic camper, as set forth in claim 1:

(k) and in which said means is supported by the upper room section andhas a connection with the lower room section, whereby raising of theupper room section relative to the lower room section will operate saidmeans.

3. In a cab-over telescopic camper:

(a) a lower room section arranged for mounting on the load-carryingplatform of a truck;

(b) an upper room section telescopically arranged on the lower roomsection and being movable into raised position relative to the lowerroom section for occupying and into a lowered position relative theretofor travelling;

(c) the lower room section being provided with a cab-over compartmentfixed thereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab ofthe truck, this compartment having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls;

((1) the upper room section being provided with a cab-over cover fixedthereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab-overcompartment, and this cover being movable up and down with the upperroom section;

(e) the cab-over cover having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls that are movable into spaced relation above thetransverse front wall and the longitudinal side walls, respectively, ofthe cab-over compartment;

(f) a transverse front panel movable into position to bridge the spacebetween the front transverse walls of the compartment and the cover whenthe latter is raised;

(g) a pair of longitudinal side panels movable into position to bridgethe space between the longitudinal side walls of the compartment and thecover when the latter is raised;

(h) the transverse front panel being hinged to the transverse front wallof the compartment, and each of the longitudinal panels being hinged toone of the longitudinal side wall of this compartment;

(i) the lateral ends of the transverse panel abutting the frontal endsof the longitudinal side panels when all of these panels are swung intobridging positions;

(j) and weather-proofing flanges mounted on the transverse front panelin positions to abut the outer faces of the longitudinal side panelswhen all of these panels occupy bridging positions.

4. In a cab-over telescopic camper:

(a) a lower room section arranged for mounting on the load-carryingplatform of a truck;

(b) an upper room section telescopically arranged on the lower roomsection and being movable into raised position relative to the lowerroom section for 0ccuping and into a lowered position relative theretofor travelling;

(c) the lower room secion being provided with a cabover compartmentfixed thereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab ofthe truck, this compartment having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls;

(d) the upper room section being provided with a cabover cover fixedthereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab-overcompartment, and this cover being movable up and down with the upperroom section;

(e) the cab-over cover having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls that are movable into spaced relation above thetransverse front wall and the longitudinal side walls, respectively, ofthe cab-over compartment;

(f) a transverse front panel movable into position to bridge the spacebetween the front transverse walls of the compartment and cover when thelatter is raised;

(g) a pair of longitudinal side panels movable into positions to bridgethe space between the longitudinal side walls of the compartment and thecover when the latter is raised;

(h) the lower room section having a plate secured t-hereto that forms abottom wall for the compartment, this plate projecting forwardly and toboth lateral sides of the lower room section;

(i) the side walls of the upper room section having notches extendingthereinto in the region of the cabover cover to receive thelaterally-projecting sides of the plate when the upper room section islowered;

(j) this plate being located to overlie the cab of the truck.

5. The cab-over telescopic camper, as set forth in (k) and in which thelower edge of the front wall of the cover and upper edges of the notchesare located so as to rest on the plate when the upper room section islowered.

6. In a cab-over telescopic camper:

(a) a lower room section arranged for mounting on the load-carryingplatform of a truck;

(b) an upper room section telescopically arranged on the lower roomsection and being movable into raised position relative to the lowerroom section for occupying and into a lowered position relative theretofor travelling;

(c) the lower room section being provided with a cabover compartmentfixed thereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab ofthe truck, this compartment having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls;

(d) the upper room section being provided with a cabover cover fixedthereto and projecting forwardly therefrom to overlie the cab-overcompartment, and this cover being movable up and down with the upperroom section;

(e) the cab-over cover having a transverse front wall and a pair oflongitudinal side walls that are moveable into spaced relation above thetransverse front wall and the longitudinal side walls, respectively, ofthe cab-over compartment;

(f) a transverse front panel movable into position to bridge the spacebetween the front transverse walls of the compartment and cover when thelatter is raised;

(g) a pair of longitudinal side panels movable into positions to bridgethe space between the longitudinal side walls of the compartment and thecover when the latter is raised;

(h) the transverse front panel being hinged to the transverse front wallof the compartment, and each of the longitudinal side panels beinghinged to one of the longitudinal side walls of this compartment;

(i) a front panel-operating cable having one end thereof anchored to thetransverse front panel and its other end anchored to the lower roomsection, the intermediate portion of this cable being trained overpulleys carried by the upper room section, and this cable having alength so as to automatically swing the transverse front panel intobridging position as the upper room section is raised;

(j) a large pulley rotatably carried by the upper room section, andhaving one end of each of a pair of side panel-operating cables securedthereto, the intermediate portions of these cables being trained overpulleys carried by the upper room section, the other ends of each ofthese cables being anchoerd to on of the longitudinal side panels so asto swing these panels into bridging position when the upper room sectionis raised and the large pulley is rotated;

(k) a small pulley fixed to the large pulley so that the least partiallyraised, whereby the side panels will former will turn the latter, thesmall pulley having clear the front panel. one end of a pulley-rotatingcable secured thereto, the intermediate portion of this cable beingtrained References Cited over a pulley carried by the upper roomsection, the

other end of this pulley-rotating cable being anchored UNITED STATESPATENTS to the lower room section so as to rotate both the 3,356,40712/1967 McGarry 296-27 X small and large pulleys when the upper roomsection 3,321,233 5/ 1967 Davis 296-23 is raised, this pulley-rotatingcable having a length 3,143,121 8/1964 McKee 296-23 X to swing thelongitudinal side panels into bridging position after the transversefront panel has been at 10 PHILIP GOODMAN Prlmmy Examfner'

